Five Business Lessons from One the Richest People in the World Entrepreneurs are the great achievers of our society who have the courage, determination and belief in themselves to pursue a dream, to overcome obstacles, to nurture ideas to fruition. Carlos Slim, who controls phone companies and has major investments in retailing, construction, banking, insurance, railroads and mining, is one of these great achievers and has an estimated fortune of $60 billion.
Born in Mexico City in 1940, Carlos Slim Helú has been named the richest man in the world by Fortune Magazine in 2007 and the second richest by Forbes in 2008. The son of Lebanese parents, Carlos Slim Helú frequently surpasses Bill Gates and Warren Buffet in wealth. This year, Carlos Slim invested $250 million dollars in the venerable newspaper New York Times.
Lección #1: Don't Follow the Crowd or the Market “When there is a crisis, that's when some are interested in getting out,” says Slim, “and that's when we are interested in getting in.”
Lección #2: Understand the Future and Your Place in It “I’m a paper man, not electronic, ”says Slim. “My children gave me a laptop for Christmas, but all I know how to do so far is push the on button,” states Slim Helú, who studied engineering at the Universidad Autónoma de México. He can process numbers and formulas at a speed impossible for most. But, when it comes to using computers and the like, Slim is uninterested. He prefers to keep to himself in the drab basement of his two-story headquarters surrounded by the paper ledgers he has been using since he was a boy.
Lección #3: Make Your Company a Lean, Mean, Operating Machine Slim dislikes being compared to Warren Buffett, not because he does not admire the American investor's long list of shrewd business acquisitions, but rather because he feels it is an inadequate assessment. When Slim takes over control of a company, he does so in order to operate it. Buffett wants a good investment, but Slim wants to run a company. He wants to make his companies practical and lean operations, bringing efficiency to their every move. And, most importantly, he wants to do it himself.
Lección #4: You Can Control Your Own Destiny “Those who say that I am taking over the city [Mexico City], that I have already bought up everything, are not going to stop me from continuing my project,” says Slim. In the early 1980s, Slim began investing in real estate, construction, mining, tires, and paper goods. From there, he moved into telephones, computers, and even clothing. But, it was not so much what he was buying as the rate and scope at which he was buying them.
Lección #5: Everything Has a Bottom Line He is everything from a political advisor to the highest-ranking Mexican officials, to a devout family man, but Slim would be the first one to tell you that first and foremost, he is an entrepreneur. It is through those eyes that he approaches everything else. What does that mean exactly? That means that everything Slim does, he does with its own bottom line.
Born in Mexico City in 1940, Carlos Slim Helú has been named the richest man in the world by Fortune Magazine in 2007 and the second richest by Forbes in 2008. The son of Lebanese parents, Carlos Slim Helú frequently surpasses Bill Gates and Warren Buffet in wealth. This year, Carlos Slim invested $250 million dollars in the venerable newspaper New York Times.
Lección #1: Don't Follow the Crowd or the Market “When there is a crisis, that's when some are interested in getting out,” says Slim, “and that's when we are interested in getting in.”
Lección #2: Understand the Future and Your Place in It “I’m a paper man, not electronic, ”says Slim. “My children gave me a laptop for Christmas, but all I know how to do so far is push the on button,” states Slim Helú, who studied engineering at the Universidad Autónoma de México. He can process numbers and formulas at a speed impossible for most. But, when it comes to using computers and the like, Slim is uninterested. He prefers to keep to himself in the drab basement of his two-story headquarters surrounded by the paper ledgers he has been using since he was a boy.
Lección #3: Make Your Company a Lean, Mean, Operating Machine Slim dislikes being compared to Warren Buffett, not because he does not admire the American investor's long list of shrewd business acquisitions, but rather because he feels it is an inadequate assessment. When Slim takes over control of a company, he does so in order to operate it. Buffett wants a good investment, but Slim wants to run a company. He wants to make his companies practical and lean operations, bringing efficiency to their every move. And, most importantly, he wants to do it himself.
Lección #4: You Can Control Your Own Destiny “Those who say that I am taking over the city [Mexico City], that I have already bought up everything, are not going to stop me from continuing my project,” says Slim. In the early 1980s, Slim began investing in real estate, construction, mining, tires, and paper goods. From there, he moved into telephones, computers, and even clothing. But, it was not so much what he was buying as the rate and scope at which he was buying them.
Lección #5: Everything Has a Bottom Line He is everything from a political advisor to the highest-ranking Mexican officials, to a devout family man, but Slim would be the first one to tell you that first and foremost, he is an entrepreneur. It is through those eyes that he approaches everything else. What does that mean exactly? That means that everything Slim does, he does with its own bottom line.
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